Ignatus Rubaratuka, Chairman of the TPA Board of Directors, said
following the suspension the port’s manpower has gone down from
3,000 in 2017 to 2,251 in 2018.

"The port authorities are now grappling with a manpower
shortage," Rubaratuka told the Parliamentary Public Accounts
Committee (PAC) in the capital Dodoma.

The PAC was following up on progress made on implementation
of directives it made to the port authorities last year.

Rubaratuka said TPA had implemented most of the directives,
including evaluation of property and machinery worth Tanzanian
shillings 1.8 trillion (about 785 million U.S. dollars).

At the same time, Rubaratuka said during the previous
financial year TPA revenue climbed to Tanzanian shillings 838
billion, well above the 2015/2016 financial year’s collection of
734 billion, thanks to increased cargo handling during the
period.

He said cargo handling at the Dar es Salaam port rose to 16.2
million tonnes compared to the previous year’s 15 million
tonnes.

In July 2017, President John Magufuli unveiled the Dar es
Salaam Maritime Gateway Project aimed to overhaul the Dar es
Salaam port’s infrastructure by 2023.

The project, which, according to the World Bank, will cost
about 421 million U.S. dollars, will see the construction of a
new multi-purpose berth, dredging of the port’s entrance
channel, and intermodal improvements to both rail and road
linkages.

The project is being financed in part by the World Bank,
which has provided roughly 350 million dollars in loans and
grants, while the bulk of the remainder, approximately 70
million dollars was being provided by TPA.